Why we value our real books more than Kindle copies
AS MILLIONS of people read books on Kindle e-readers and stream films on Netflix, it may seem the whole world has gone digital.
But it seems clicking on icons in cyberspace can’t beat the thrill of taking home a book in a paper bag and opening it to the first page.
A study has found people still value owning physical objects more than their digital versions, because holding something makes it feel like it is yours.
US researchers found people offered a Harry Potter book or its digital version were willing to pay more to have it in their hands.
A real photograph was worth more to people than a digital snapshot and, when asked how they felt about real-life objects, they were more likely to say ‘I feel like I own it’ or ‘I feel like it is mine’.
Dr Carey Morewedge, from Boston university, said: ‘Because we cannot touch, and hold and control digital goods in the way that we interact with physical goods, we feel an impaired sense of ownership for digital goods.
‘they never quite feel quite like they are ours, and when we feel that we own a thing, we psychologically inflate its value. As a result, digital goods don’t enjoy this premium we extend to things that we own.’
the study asked more than 400 people how much they would be willing to pay for a film such as Batman movie the Dark Knight or a book such as Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
If the book was on a Kindle, people were willing to pay £5.31. But that rose by more than a third to £7.34 for the physical item. they were willing to pay £3.88 for the film on internet store itunes, but nearly 80 per cent more for a DVD, which they thought was worth £6.87.
A separate experiment found tourists were willing to pay three times the price for a photograph of someone dressed as a hero of the American Revolution than for a digital copy.
Dr Morewedge told the Journal of Consumer Research: ‘Despite the considerable gains in consumer welfare that digital goods thus provide, our preferences are not solely determined by how useful or practical we find these innovations.’